Fisher House and Best Buy Connecting America's Heroes and their Families

WASHINGTON, D.C., May 22 - "Connectivity," helping wounded or injured service members stay connected with their families while hospital patients, is the theme of Best Buy's Memorial Day through Fourth of July campaign to support the nonprofit Fisher House Foundation.

Best Buy, the nation's largest consumer electronics retailer, is partnering with the 38 Fisher Houses - large multi-family comfort homes on the grounds of 18 major military medical centers and nine VA medical centers - to donate lap top computers and other support to make it easier for service men and women at these medical centers stay in touch with their friends and families. The Campaign also gives Best Buy customers an easy way to support Fisher House, the troops and their families through in-store and online donations.

Beginning on Memorial Day Weekend and continuing through the week of July 4th, Best Buy customers can donate to Fisher House at any Best Buy register during check-out, or any time from the Best Buy website, www.bestbuy.com. Best Buy vendor partners, including Nintendo, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba are donating lap top computers, flat screen televisions, Wii gaming systems and other technology to the Campaign. Best Buy employees will volunteer at Fisher Houses and help install and service the new systems. All is part of an effort by Best Buy to provide the Fisher Houses with the most modern technology so the families can remain connected to their loved ones.

The Fisher House program began in 1990 when philanthropists and patriots Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher offered to build and donate to the government comfort homes on the grounds of military medical centers to permit service members to be close to their families during a hospitalization. The program at VA medical centers began later in 1994. Today, there is at least one Fisher House at every major military medical center, and more are planned. Since September 11, 2001, Fisher House Foundation has made support to service men and women hospitalized as a result of their service in Iraq or Afghanistan, and their families, its highest priority. The six Fisher Houses that will start construction in 2007 are being built at locations where the combat casualties will receive long term rehabilitation. The equipment and services being donated by Best Buy will improve the quality of life for these service members and their families, and enable to them to stay connected with their families and friends.


About Fisher House
Fisher House Foundation is best known for the network of 38 comfort homes on the grounds of military and VA major medical centers. The houses are 5,000 to 16,000 square foot homes, with up to 21 suites, donated to the military and VA by the Fisher House Foundation. The program provides support to families of patients receiving care at the nearby medical center and has ensured that families of service men and women wounded or injured in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom do not pay for their stay at a Fisher House or other base facility if they are on a wait list. For more information on the work of Fisher House Foundation, go to www.fisherhouse.org or call toll-free (888) 294-8560.

About Best Buy Co., Inc.
Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) operates a global portfolio of brands with a commitment to growth and innovation. Best Buy's employees strive to provide customers around the world with superior experiences by responding to their unique needs and aspirations. The company sells consumer electronics, home-office products, entertainment software, appliances and related services through more than 1,150 retail stores across the United States, throughout Canada and in China. Our multi-channel operations include: Best Buy (BestBuy.com, BestBuy.ca and BestBuy.com.cn), Future Shop (FutureShop.ca), Geek Squad (GeekSquad.com and GeekSquad.ca), Pacific Sales Kitchen and Bath Centers (PacificSales.com), Magnolia Audio Video (Magnoliaav.com) and Jiangsu Five Star Appliance Co. (Five-Star.cn). Best Buy supports the communities in which its employees work and live through volunteerism and grants that benefit children and education.

Paging Dr McDreamy...

To all you fine folks who helped out... Thank You!!! Our Hero won the contest... awesome job everyone! And congratz Major Lipshutz, thanks for being our Hero. Enjoy your moment, and be safe on your journey to the Sandbox...

*hugs*
Miss B
****************************************

Through Soldiers' Angels, we have heard from the wife of one of the Heroes who is in a pretty special situation...

My husband, Major Josh Lipschutz, is one of ten finalists for a Philadelphia contest called "Paging Dr. McDreamy". www.my1061.com . He served in Iraq in 2005 and has orders to redeploy to Afghanistan. I am his wife and we have two young children (5 and 3 1/2).It would mean the world to me to have him win this contest prior to his deployment. He has only 17 votes out of more than 1000! His photo was shot in Iraq.

Please spread the message and ask people to vote by going to www.my1061.com, scrolling through all 10 finalists (he's the only military one), and then enter their email address. They'll then receive an automatic email from the radio station, and their vote won't count unless they click on the link.

So come on out... vote for one of our own... thanks for your help!!!

*hugs*

Miss B

The Hardest Part of Being an Angel

It's not the letter writing. It's not the packaging (unless you've ever seen me trying to tape up a box single-handed that has about 1.5 times the "legal" square inch limit of stuff in it). It's not the nights up emailing, chatting and losing sleep, the money spent on morale, support "stuff" to send over and the postage.

It's not even the losses that accompany being involved in war.

I'm a Team Leader for Soldiers' Angels Letter Writing Team. I have a group (or a platoon, as I like to say) of 40+ Angels that I coordinate daily with the Heroes for letter/card support. I see a lot of names. I send out a lot of names. Some are unique enough you remember them. Some send a message in that initial sign-up that touches you in just the right way and they are remembered as well. I'm also a member of the Wounded TLC Team for SA. We send cards of hope, thanks and encouragement to those healing from the wounds of battle. That's a difficult card to send.

In the days that pass, I see the names of our Heroes who have made the greatest sacrifice. In my time with SA, I have seen the number of names I recognize grow. What stops me cold is the name of the Hero that I have physically sent to one of my team, or to whom I personally have written. These folks become like extended family. They laugh, joke, cry, talk, vent and love us. And we love them. Having them come home and lose contact with us through the everyday ebb and flow of life is disheartening, but at least we know they're alright; it's one less worry. Having them lost to the cruelty of war is heartbreaking. And it hurts our hearts when this happens. When an Angel loses her "official" adoptee, it is brutal. We wonder if we'll be able to continue supporting them. It's like making new friends, or finding new love, or having mixed family. You learn about them, you get to know them, you have "relationships" of sorts with them, as a brother, sister, father would. Then they're gone. You grieve for them, their families and loved ones, and yourself.

You've lost a part of yourself. The one that thrived on talking to them (whether online or in letters) and hearing their perspective, their thoughts and feelings; learning as we can't from books. You wonder if you have the internal strength to commit to taking another Hero under your wing. Are you able to make them feel as appreciated and loved as the one who was lost? Can you open up and talk of the same things as you did with your departed Hero, without bringing to the front the death of a comrade? Can you overcome your fears of another loss and move on with the mission at hand?

You'd better, because there are many more out there who need that kind word of encouragement to get them through one more day. More to whom getting that little box of goodies that lets them know they are being thought of when they think they have no one else in the world. More to whom it means the world when they "chat" online and have some sort of contact to the familiar world of American life.

So, step up, gear up and get it together, Angel. Cry for the ones lost - not that they've died, but that they lived to protect us*.

The hardest part is loving them.

Miss B

*paraphrase of the famous quote "It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived."

- General George S. Patton, Jr

Gathering Of Eagles

There are two petitions now up online. One for people to sign only if they WILL be at the Gathering of Eagles on March 17th:

To: All Interested Parties

We, the undersigned, pledge to attend the March 17th Gathering of Eagles in Washington, D.C. We intend to stand guard at our nation's sacred memorials to honor the memory of our troops who died in service of our great country. We promise to recognize and reflect on the sacrifice of our fallen heroes. Please sign here only IF you WILL be in attendance at the Vietnam War Memorial on March 17th. We are trying to obtain an accurate total so we know how many to expect. http://www.PetitionOnline.com/GOE31707/petition.html

Our troops, current and prior, are true heroes and we will honor each and every one of them by standing side by side, heads held high, defending the sanctity of our nation's monuments to veterans. Our sacred pledge is that our actions will honor those heroes and that we will respect their service and their sacrifice. I WILL be at the Gathering of Eagles on March 17th in Washington, DC.

Sincerely,
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/GOE31707/petition.html



The second petition is for those who will be with us in spirit:


To: The Gathering of Eagles Participants
We, the undersigned, will (IN SPIRIT) be in Washington, DC on March 17th. We can not attend but we want everyone at the "Gathering Of Eagles" to know that we are united with them as they ring the memorials to protect these hallowed monuments from defacement and dishonor. We believe that our troops, current and prior, are true heroes and we will be honoring them all that day with our thoughts, our prayers and our actions. On that day, we intend to recognize and reflect on the sacrifice of our fallen heroes. We also pledge to pray for the safety of those who are able to attend. We thank them for representing all of us who love and respect our great country. May God richly bless America and all those who truly appreciate her. http://www.petitiononline.com/GOE317/petition.html


This will be very helpful in giving us some idea of how many Eagles will be in attendance on the 17th and how many will be supporting us from home. If you plan to be there, sign in. Those who just can’t attend but stand with us in spirit are asked to sign the second petition.

Gathering of Eagles is an act of love by thousands of veterans who choose to honor the sacrifice of the fallen by guarding the memorials from those who would desecrate them on March 17th in a “peaceful” anti-war rally in Washington D.C.

It is also an act of war, a call to action for every American who chooses to stand and say “No more!” to those who would spit on our veterans and ridicule their service to our nation.

We invite you to join us March 17th, as we stand together as one to ensure that the sacrifices of our fallen and the memorials that remember them are not tarnished by the ungrateful.

By C.J. Raven U.S. Veteran DispatchFebruary 07, 2007
Leftist activists who march to the Pentagon next month will discover that their path won’t be as clear as it has been in the past.

The group, led by Cindy Sheehan, Jane Fonda, Ed Asner and their ilk, plan to gather March 17 at the Vietnam Memorial Wall to begin a march to protest America’s involvement in the Iraq war. The date marks the fourth anniversary of the war’s beginning.

This time, however, protestors will see objectors if they spit on Iraqi veterans again, or throw paint on a war memorial. This time, they will encounter a buzz saw of Vietnam veterans and supporters who will gather to protect the Wall, and show their support for U.S. troops. The counter-protestors are calling themselves the Gathering of Eagles.

“… An eagle knows when a storm is approaching long before it breaks. The eagle will fly to some high spot and wait for the winds to come. When the storm hits, it sets its wings so that the wind will pick it up and lift it above the storm. While the storm rages below, the eagle is soaring above it.”

An unknown author wrote that description, but it describes how the veterans see their mission. They are angry that the Wall is being used as a jumping off point for a political protest and they are gathering to protect it from another storm of anti-war activists.

“The anti-war/anti-America group cannot be allowed to use the Vietnam Memorial Wall as a back-drop to their anti-America venom and stain the hallowed ground that virtually cries out with blood at the thought of this proposed desecration … it must not happen,” said veteran Bud Gross. “… All Americans are invited to support our effort, which is intended as a defender of hallowed ground and intended as a non-violent competition between those that would sell out America and those of us who support freedom and keeping the fight with the enemy on distant shores.”

The group defending the Wall will be wearing armbands to identify themselves. Those who are unable to stand with the defenders are being asked to wear armbands with small U.S. flags to show their own communities that they abhor the Fonda-Sheehan tactics.

“We’ll be there to act as a countervailing force against the Cindy Sheehan-Jane Fonda march from the Vietnam Memorial to the Pentagon,” retired Navy Capt. Larry Bailey said. “We will protect the Vietnam Memorial. If they try to deface it, there will be some violence, I guarantee you.”

Bailey and thousands of his fellow Vietnam vets are worried that the anti-war protesters will damage the wall, just as they spray-painted the steps of the Capitol at their last march.

The wall is sacred to the men and women who fought in that war.

“It is our contact with our dead brothers — those who lost their lives in the cause of their country,” Bailey said.

And so it is that Washington will see a Gathering of Eagles - Americans determined to stand up against leftist propagandists who denigrate U.S. troops and the mission for which they sometimes sacrifice their lives.

Retired Col. Harry Riley organized the Gathering of Eagles. Organizers hope thousands will show up in Washington from as far away as Hawaii, and they won’t only be Vietnam veterans. Families, friends and veterans of other wars, including Iraq, and soldiers still on active duty, will be there to defend the Wall.

“When we say a gathering of eagles, that signifies people who support the American way,” Bailey said.

The leftist Web site MarchonPentagon.org describes the anti-war demonstrators this way: “The March on the Pentagon has already attracted more than 1,500 endorsers, including prominent individuals and national and grassroots organizations. Students on college campuses and in high schools will be attending in large numbers. There will be a large turnout from the Muslim and Arab American community, which is organizing throughout the country.”

The movement is well-financed. Its sponsor list is lengthy and contains highly recognizable names, as well as those of Fonda and Sheehan:

· Former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark (who offered his services to defend Saddam Hussein)
· Ultra-liberal Congresswoman Maxine Waters
· Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney
· Ron Kovic, Vietnam veteran and author of “Born on the 4th of July”
· Mahdi Bray, executive director, Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation
· Waleed Bader, vice chair of the National Council of Arab Americans and former president of Arab Muslim American Federation
· Medea Benjamin, co-founder, CODEPINK and Global Exchange
· Free Palestine Alliance
· Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation
· Islamic Political Party of America
· FMLN (Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front)
· Islamic-National Congress
· Gay Liberation Network
· Muslim Student Association
· Jibril Hough, chairman, Islamic Political Party of America